Just went crazy buying new gear ($1400 Atomic BC1 BCD, TWO Atomic Cobalts, B2, M1, SS1..) STOP ME!!!

[ams511]

Wow. Just wow.

No Wowie.

 

[jerbee]

Update: Just purchased a practically new set of Atomic split fins from a local realtor who listed them on FB marketplace who said that the people who moved out of one of his properties left them behind, and as a non-diver, he had no use for them. MSRP: $299. I snagged them for $35. I was thinking that since they are a little bit lighter, they will be easier to travel with than my Apollo’s, but it turns out they are much longer (and only 1 lb lighter). They feel great on my feet though, and at that price, why the hell not? Currently looking to purchase springs for the Apollo’s, but I’ll probably get generic spring straps ($25 vs Apollo brand $99) on Amazon.

I also got my plane ticket to the Philippines yesterday... leaving August 6th, coming back November 7th. Still waiting for a buyer for the BCD, but if my flight leaves and it hasn’t sold yet, I’m going to take it as a sign that I should hang onto it and dive the heck out of it while in Asia.

 

[Deborah Roa]

The title says it all. I’ve had my Cressi R1 BCD with my XS Compact reg/octo and AC2 1st for about 2 years now, and after graduating from law school and in anticipation of moving to the Philippines for half a year in August, I decided I wanted to treat myself to something a little nicer... so I got an Atomic SS1 inflator/octo combo, to streamline and have one less hose. I picked it up on eBay for $120... It looked great on my BCD, so I decided I should get a serious 2nd stage to allow me to grow as a diver (if I ever start getting involved in tech diving)... so I got a M1 2nd stage from buddhasummer on here for around $150. Then I saw a Z2 on eBay for $90, so I figured “why not, it’ll be good to have as a backup in my gear bag, just in case”. Then I figured that my 2nd stages were all Atomic, so I may as well look at their 1st stages... then I fell in love with the jet seat piston, and found a shop in Florida that was selling a refurb B2 first stage for $160. Got it.

While I was on FB, I noticed a dive shop owner had listed their new BCD, the Atomic BC1, for $650. I talked to her, and she sold it to me for $550 (shipped). Since it retails for $1400 + tax, I figured this was the only chance I’d realistically have of owning such a high-end BCD. I certainly wasn’t going to pay north of 1500 for a poodle jacket, ever. So then I realized the only thing that wasn’t Atomic was my analog pressure gauge and my Cressi Leonardo dive computer... so I went hunting on eBay for a Cobalt ($1200 new). I don’t know how it happened, but I sent a “best offer” of $300 to pretty much every person on there for 2 weeks who had a Cobalt for sale... and someone finally said yes... only when I went to pay for it, I realized that the auction was actually for TWO Cobalts! So basically I bought two of them for $150 each. I ended up having to send them to Huish Outdoors for a recall, because the original owner never did the recall. While they were there, they replaced the button magnets with molded buttons (the original style was prone to rusting).

Then last night I found a guy 120 miles away on FB marketplace who sold me 2 aluminum tanks that were current on hydro and VIP for $65. The lady who sold me the BC1 also had Atomic blades on clearance for half off retail (120, so they were 60), but I really like my Apollo Bio-Fins (which I found on clearance for $80 in a dive shop in Pensacola), so I didn’t take her up on that offer... At this point, I can’t think of anything else I could possibly need. When I decided to upgrade to an inflator/octo combo I certainly didn’t plan on setting out to buy a whole new package, but that’s precisely what happened. Am I crazy, or would you have done the same thing? I mean, there’s no way that I could have afforded all of that gear at retail pricing (hell, I couldn’t afford the BCD by itself at retail), but I kept coming across these ridiculous deals that I couldn’t say no to. Honestly, what diver, ever, has said “I have too much gear”?


You’d have done the same.... right? Is there anything left that I might wake up tomorrow and realize I *need* it, or can I finally hang my hat up and say “done”?

I know I would of

 

[Deborah Roa]

this is off subject is there anyone from Punta Gorda Florida? I am looking to dive Gasperella island area heard there were hammerheads is this true?

 

[tridacna]

“I’m a fish”? You’ve been diving a lot.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

Currently looking to purchase springs for the Apollo’s, but I’ll probably get generic spring straps ($25 vs Apollo brand $99) on Amazon

Or buy some bungee from the 99 cent store. They're easy to attach, easier to use than spring straps and last a few hundred dives before having to spend another $1 to replace them.

I know I would of

Would have.

 

[jerbee]

Or buy some bungee from the 99 cent store. They're easy to attach, easier to use than spring straps and last a few hundred dives before having to spend another $1 to replace them.

Ummmmm.... that actually works? Why stop there? I have yards of latex medical tubing in one of my 'random scuba crap' boxes in the closet that I use to build my speargun bands with that could probably work just as well. Maybe even better? I never actually thought of doing it that way. Do you have any idea where I could find a decent tutorial on how to go about jury-rigging something like that?? I'm about to head off to the Googles to see if I can hunt down some schematics. What a good idea!

edit: Found this thread (which has links to other threads... it looks like I have a new project!!!
Making my own springstraps

“I’m a fish”? You’ve been diving a lot.

I stopped keeping track around #300ish... so as a non-professional (well technically I guess I'm a pro as long as I keep my DM active but you know what I mean), I guess 'a lot' is a good description.

 

[Navymarkv]

I think there might be meetings you could attend...

 

[chillyinCanada]

Jerbee, "friends don't let friends dive split fins"

I'm just sayin'.

Might be time to stop now

 

[jerbee]

Just an update.. I received two brand new Cobalt 2 computers today. No, I didn’t lose my mind... I originally got the two Cobalt 1’s, then sent them in for a recall. Got them back a few weeks ago and went spearfishing on the oil rigs over the weekend with one... first dive, about 30 feet down and it floods. Couldn’t see how much air I had left, depth, etc from that point on (on the subsequent 2 dives, either). On Saturday night I emailed a contact at Huish and got word back about an hour later that they would get in touch with the engineers on Monday. Monday afternoon I was emailed an overnight label to return both computers. I had explained I was worried that if I took the second one on my 3 month trip to Asia that it might flood too, like the first one did. Anyway, they got them Tuesday afternoon and about an hour later the engineering department called up to say they were going to ship me two new Cobalt 2’s as way of apology. What an apology, indeed. I just unboxed both of them - they’re charging now.

They saved my trip. I know, it was put at risk in the first place because they weren’t (at least one wasn’t) sealed properly during the recall, but things happen in life so I’m not assigning blame or angry about it. I’m just happy that their customer service was so awesome that they were able to get me back on my feet and ready for my trip, with absolutely zero wasted time whatsoever... which was especially important considering the Cobalt 1s were sent out Monday, and I leave for my trip this coming Monday. Things like this are one of the reasons I’m a fan of getting gear from companies backed by a serious commitment to the customer... like Atomic/Huish Outdoors. What could have been an ugly incident causing me no end of grief (as I would have had to either borrow, rent, or dive computer for the upcoming trip) was handled superbly and went beyond my expectations. Huge kudos to them. And to @RonR for all of his Cobalt expertise, which (unknowing to him) influenced which computers I would originally buy.

Plus, now I have two Cobalt 2’s. After the trip I’ll probabky end up selling one.. or both, in order to buy a Perdido AI, but at the moment I’m as happy as a gopher in soft dirt.

Jerbee, "friends don't let friends dive split fins"

I actually really like my splits! I dove regular fins since 2003, and only switched to splits in 2017, but they (at least the ones I have) are super responsive and feel more natural on me than any “regular” ones ever did.